On the outskirts of town lies an ancient temple to an unknown deity. Periodically, undead creatures issue from the catacombs beneath it. The party receives a commission from the city elders to venture into the catacombs and exterminate the undead. Pgs. 64-71
An ancient cave, defended by ancient death traps and weird arcane seals conceals the antediluvian vault of an archlich whose reign predates recorded history. Undisturbed for untold eons, the vault now stirs thanks to the machinations of cultists who have meddled with secrets best left undisturbed... This module sends the heroes to an ancient cave occupied by cultists dedicated to the Mists of Madness. Defended by ancient death traps and weird arcane seals, the caves conceal an antediluvian vault, the resting place of an archlich whose reign predates recorded history in the Known Realms. Undisturbed for untold eons, now the machinations of the cultists and their eladrin master threaten to awaken the archlich, to dire ends that none can predict.
Centuries ago, the four deities worshipped by mortals – Kishar, Kotaresh, Lyth, and Asar-Segt – threatened to drown the world in a flood of saltwater to punish the living for their impiety. The oracles and witches of the realm struck a desperate bargain with the gods, however, and convinced them to spare the world. In exchange, the mortal kingdoms were bound to demonstrate their faith once every generation by sending their most courageous and adroit warriors to the Crucible, a ziggurat in the lowest valley of the land. Every quarter-century, on the first full moon of summer, an eclipse darkens the night and the sealed ziggurat opens. Many traps, tricks, and guardians lie within the Crucible to test those who enter. Few who heed the challenge of the gods survive – most find only quick death. If the races of the world are deserving of the gods’ affection, their champions will overcome the trials of the Crucible and light the Divine Brazier hidden in its uppermost chamber. If they are not, the flickering candle of civilization will be snuffed. Little of value will have been lost. Published by Defy Danger and Save Versus Death
The seaside town of Ashenport has a troubled past and a dark secret. If you spend a night in Ashenport, you just might not wake up the next morning. "The Last Breaths of Ashenport" is an adventure of survival and alien horrors. The adventure is self-contained and can be placed in any setting. Pgs. 70-105
E2, following up on Death's Reach, the PC's first travel to Sigil following the smuggled remains of the primordial Timesus. The pursuit then leads into the Abyss, through the White Kingdom to face Doresain, the Ghoul King, exarch of Orcus. The module certainly is epic, placing the PCs up against powerful monsters like greater demons, death knights, and a demilich. It may be frustrating that the PCs arrive too late to disrupt the plot (have to allow for the finale in the next adventure) but taking out Orcus' right hand ghoul may be satisfying. Includes a skill challenge for crossing a portion of the Abyss For environments, City refers to Sigil.
Centuries ago, a green dragon terrorized the civilized lands near its lair. As the beast grew in power, countless cult followers gathered. With the help of its worshipers, the dragon transformed into a runescribed dracolich. The dragon and its cult grew larger and more powerful over the centuries. This, of course, led to war with the surrounding nations. After terrible battles and much loss, the cultists were slaughtered and the dragon destroyed, but its phylactery could not be found. The beast reformed, gathered cultists anew, and again was defeated. The phylactery still could not be found. This time, the powers of civilization decided not to destroy the beast, but to trap it, locking it away and setting various guards. Recently, a divination ritual performed by someone the PCs respect revealed that great peril will arise if a creature lairing in Mount Sorrowspire (the dracolich) is not destroyed. Pgs. 180-185
Many Cannith creation forges were lost on the Day of Mourning, but a rogue artificer has uncovered one of those that pursued some of the most experimental and dangerous research during the Last War. But while seeking the forbidden knowledge in the forge, this explorer awakened a dark power that was more than she could handle, and that now threatens the region. Pgs. 4-34
To stop a devastating rampage of giants across the land, the party must venture into the lair of the stone giant thane Arnak to uncover the truth about why he has broken his peace with the neighboring dwarves. In the process, they will have the opportunity to retrieve important symbols of the fight against the giants and uncover a dangerous excavation. The adventure is part of the "Against the Giants" series originally by Gary Gygax, hence the writing credit.
A flameskull lord that calls itself the Bright Lord of Everburning Fire has taken control of a primordial node deep within the Elemental Chaos. It long ago shrugged off the control of its original creator and now follows its own plans and desires. Top among these is the desire to tap into the power of a fire primordial and increase its own status from undead creature to demigod. Pgs. 156-161
The characters arrive in Fallcrest just as a blizzard starts from the gloomy black clouds. the villagers gather to discuss how to survive the untimely and unusual blizzard. Suddenly between the roar of the wind and thunder, a ship descends filled with undead with one message: Return the ice scepter!. Afterwards, the characters must decide, find and return this relic to the Winter King, or bluff and plan to dethrone him. As they reach the tops of the mountains, possibly injured, the whole of the Winter King's inner domain stands before them. If they fail, winter will claim the Nentir Vale forever. Group of 4-6 players.
From time immemorial, the rulers of the mortal world have been counseled and tempted by capricious primordial spirits who rule over the elements. The greatest and most sinister of these was a half-kraken medusa known as the Maelstrom Queen, who sought to supplant the mortal races with her own line of immortal tentacled monstrosities. On the verge of her ultimate triumph, when the leviathans at her command rose from the depths, a legendary assassin murdered the Maelstrom Queen in her half-submerged palace with her own weapon. But the primordial mistress refused to let something as trifling as death put an end to her designs. Every 13 years, she regenerates enough mystic power to rise again, and the world’s greatest heroes are sent to murder the Maelstrom Queen once more.
A proud paladin’s quest for glory against marauding orcs ends in tragic failure with his disappearance and presumed death. Worse still, an artifact of his faith entrusted to him has gone missing. Can the adventurers reclaim the artifact and force an end to the hostilities, or will the brightest beacon of good in the Western Heartlands be extinguished? Pgs. 28-43
A band of evil fey, led by a corrupt bralani, has raided an eladrin city and kidnapped several respected elders. The fomorian king claims the rogues don’t act on his behalf, but the eladrin city threatens the fomorians all the same. To prevent war, the PCs travel through the Underdark of the Feywild—a wondrous place filled with the beautiful and the horrifying—in search of the evil fey and their captives. Pgs. 96-101
In what became known as the Age of Madness, an astral lich calling himself the Crimson Hand descended from the sea of stars, setting his fell gaze upon Gaea. Her red moon he made both his temple and his phylactery, and from there he sought to enslave those who would be ruled and devour those who would not. The Ancients of the four corners of Gaea united their knowledge against this threat, constructing a colossal golem, and inscribing the four POWER WORDS upon four scrolls. These scrolls they fed to the colossus, who ascended to the crimson moon in an instant. The sages of the realm watched as the flashes of battle signaled in the night sky, ending as the crimson moon itself split in half. The lich and the colossus were destroyed, and the Age of Madness was ended. Millennia have passed, and now a new threat rises from the netherworld. The four POWER WORDS have been forgotten, lost among the shattered remnants of the moon. The sages have once again united what remains of their power, this time to teleport a paltry handful of crusaders to retrieve the lost scrolls before the world is doomed.
In order to stop a series of devastating giant raids, the party must venture into the stronghold of the frost giant jarl Grugnur to both recover the giants' plans and eliminate Grugnur, who is the tactical head behind the operations. The adventure is part of the "Against the Giants" series originally by Gary Gygax, hence the writing credit.
Wicked forces conspire to usurp the power of the Raven Queen, god of death, by unraveling the foundations of reality. To prevent this cosmic coup, mighty heroes must survive an epic journey into the Shadowfell's timeless core, where all things find their end. The beginning of the end of the original 4th edition adventure path (although ties are very light to the heroic and elite tier adventures). The PCs must first prove themselves worthy to act as the Raven Queen's agents. They will then be sent to Death's Reach, a graveyard and dumping ground from the Dawn's War. There, they must fight through the Black Star Host- powerful elemental beings, to prevent Orcus was resurrecting a primordial, Timesus the Black Star. One notable encounter is a random encounter with the Worm of Ages. This huge worm has the ability to swallow and rules for moving creatures from its maw to its throat, gullet, and into the stomach.
In times ancient, an infamous paladin-artificer named Khaldun unearthed a cursed tome bound in the flesh of the first medusa. Driven to madness by its secrets, he used the necromantic magic contained within to call forth an army of dread warriors from the Netherworld. Though his assault was devastating, he was ultimately unsuccessful, and the mightiest crusaders of the realm banished Khaldun to the Netherworld, where he would rot for eternity at the bottom of the River Dis. Unfortunately, rather than perishing in that bleak plane, Khaldun escaped his silt grave and thrived, amassing a legion of undead followers and erecting a Tomb in which he could perfect his mechanical craft without interruption. It was not long before he shed his body and became a demilich. After several centuries of scheming, the undead warriors under the command of the ‘Iron Lich’ have burst free of the Netherworld, laying waste to not only the mortal kingdoms that exiled him, but also the exalted domains of the gods themselves. The crusaders’ quest is simple – stead the Tomb and destroy the Iron Lich. Published by Defy Danger and Save Versus Death
“The Lost Mines of Karak” is the sequel to “The Shadow Rift of Umbraforge” and the fourth part of the Scales of War adventure path. After the player characters' success in "Siege of Bordrin's Watch" and "The Shadow Rift of Umbraforge", they have garnered something of a reputation in the city of Overlook. They are introduced to a wealthy patron that believes there is a connection between a shadar-kai arms dealer (from the previous two adventures) and a long lost dwarven mine. The patron wishes the PCs to find and secure the mine in order to use its wealth and resources to defend the city. The party then must travel through a wasteland and desert to find this mine. Once they have, they must fight through the hordes of monstrous creatures that inhabit it and defeat the Queen of the Drylands - a powerful naga. Pgs. 56-93
The entity known as Oreiax is a gruesome, stunted monstrosity born of ancient death. Rescued from an eternity of petrification by Doresain the Ghoul King, Oreiax immediately pledged itself to the Ghoul King's service, and thus indirectly, into Orcus's service. Oreiax, born of stone and death, seeks to glorify Doresain by petrifying the world. Pgs. 112-119
Navigate court intrigue in the Shadow Fey realm to save the city of Zobeck. Earn status in the court through duels, quests, and negotiation to survive the machinations of factions and nobles to gain freedom for the city of Zobeck from the King and Queen of the Shadow Fey. Also available in 5e format.